Protective hood

ABSTRACT

A protective hood, particularly for the purpose of protecting the head of a person being and/or bathing inside a steam bath cabinet, the said protective hood including a separate hood part covering the head of the person inside the steam bath cabinet at least partially, the said hood part including one opening for pushing the person&#39;s head to inside the hood part, the said protective hood being attached to the steam bath cabinet at the head opening in the roof of the steam bath cabinet in such a way that the head of the person, stuck through the head opening in the steam bath cabinet, is at least partially inside the hood part. In the protective hood in accordance with the invention, the head opening of the protective hood incorporates a collar seal designed to improve the level of protection provided by the protective hood and to prevent the ingress of steam from the steam bath cabinet to inside the hood part and/or from the hood part of the protective hood into the steam bath cabinet.

This application is a continuation of International Patent ApplicationNo. PCT/FI2007/000077 filed on Mar. 28, 2007.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a protective hood, more specifically ahood to protect the head of a person being inside and/or taking a bathin a steam bath cabinet, the said protective hood comprising a hood partcovering the head of the person being at least partially inside thesteam bath cabinet, the said hood part having at least one opening forpushing the person's head inside the hood, and the said protective hoodbeing attached to the opening in the roof of the steam bath cabinet insuch a way that the head of the person inside of the steam bath cabinetsticks out inside the protective hood part at least partially.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Most of the known steam bath cabinets are constructed in such a way thatthe bather's head sticks out from an opening in the roof of the steambath cabinet. The advantage offered by this design is that the space tobe filled with steam and the amount of steam required to be generatedremains as low as possible, meaning that the energy consumption of thesteam bath cabinet is not that high. Additionally, such a steam bathcabinet can be made relatively compact in terms of its externaldimensions, which makes it suitable for use in washing or relaxationfacilities, etc., that do not permit the construction of a larger fixedsteam room. However, the problem with such a known steam bath cabinetwith an open head opening is, among other things, that it is exposed toview and that the person inside the steam bath cabinet is inconveniencedby cold wind, rain, noise, dust and other external influences when thesteam bath cabinet is used out of doors, thereby having an adverseeffect on the pleasurable sensations and relaxation provided by thesteam bath cabinet. Additionally, the drawback with such a steam bathcabinet is that the bather, during a prolonged bath, may easily getbored because the only thing to do when in a steam bath is to sit put.This problem is highlighted when the steam bath cabinet is used, forexample, for losing weight in which case it is often necessary to stayin the steam bath cabinet for relatively long periods of time. In orderto solve these problems, protective hoods have been installed on steambath cabinets or comparable relaxation cabinets to successfully reducethe inconvenience caused by visual exposure, cold wind and rain. Suchprotective hoods have been presented, among others, in the patentpublication U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,578 A and the patent application US2003/0089370 A1. These protective hoods are, however, so open and offersuch poor protection that a cold wind and dust may cause inconvenienceespecially in connection with a longer stay in a steam bath cabinet.

The object of the invention is to provide a protective hood thateliminates a number of drawbacks associated with the currently knownprotective hoods used in connection with steam bath cabinets. Morespecifically, the object of the invention is to provide a protectivehood in which the ingress of the steam via the head opening of the steambath cabinet into, or conversely, out of, the protective hood isprevented and that provides better performance in terms of protectionfrom visual exposure, wind, rain, noise or other external sources ofinconvenience to the bather than existing hoods. Additionally, theobject of the invention is to provide entertainment for the batherduring bathing so that the bather will not feel bored and fed up evenduring a relatively prolonged steam bath.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Typical of the protective hood in accordance with the invention is thatthe head opening of the protective hood comprises a collar seal designedto improve the degree of protection provided by the protective hood andto prevent the ingress of steam from inside the steam bath cabinet intothe hood part of the protective hood, and vice versa. Such a designprevents visual exposure while reducing the inconvenience caused bywind, rain, noise, dust and other such sources of external disturbanceduring the stay in the steam bath cabinet. Additionally, the collarincluded in this type of protective hood can be used to prevent theingress of steam, via the head opening of the steam bath cabinet, intothe hood part, including a number of inconveniences associatedtherewith, such as reduced visibility due to condensation of thehood/visor or the uncontrolled ingress of cold air, dust, or smoke intothe protective hood. A sufficiently tightly fitted protective hood andthe associated collar seal can be used to advantage to reduce the amountof thermal energy escaping from the top of the steam bath cabinet and soimprove the energy economy of the steam bath cabinet. Similarly, in somecases, only the head can be steamed without having the rest of the bodyinside the steam bath cabinet being steamed (e.g. when the steam bathcabinet is used for treating the flu).

Furthermore the protective hood includes at least one steam supply ductfor supplying steam to inside the protective hood in order to steam thehead of the person in the steam bath cabinet. If warm steam is to besupplied to the head area as well, the steam supply duct can be used forfeeding a suitable amount of steam to inside the protective hood in acontrolled manner. The supply ducts may have nozzles to regulate thesupply in such a way that steam is not fed to the protective hood inexcessive amounts, just enough to warm and moisten the head according tothe bather's preferences.

In one embodiment of the protective hood in accordance with theinvention, the hood part is attached to the roof of the steam bathcabinet such that it can be detached and/or turned to one side to openit. This makes it easier to use a steam bath cabinet fitted with theprotective hood because the protective hood can be detached or turned toone side from the top of the head opening when the bather enters into orexits from the steam bath cabinet.

In one embodiment of the protective hood in accordance with theinvention, the hood part includes at least one viewing openingapproximately at the height of the steam bather's eyes, the said openingincorporating at least one adjustable visor to allow the viewing openingto be covered and opened adjustably. The viewing opening allows thebather to see his or her surroundings, provided that the protective hoodis made of a transparent material. Additionally, the viewing opening canbe used as an inlet/outlet opening for breathing air when the viewingopening is made large enough. With an adjustable visor, the viewingopening can be closed or covered partially if bathing in the steam bathcabinet takes place out of doors or in some other cool or cold place,etc.

In one embodiment of the protective hood in accordance with theinvention, the protective hood includes at least one ventilation ductleading to the inside of the hood part for the purpose of ventilatingand/or cooling the hood part. Thus, enough breathing air can be suppliedto inside the protective hood if the protective hood is closed or fullysealed. The ventilation duct can also be used for cooling the protectivehood and supplying suitable fragrance or refreshing substances in orderto provide the desired scent or freshness.

In one embodiment of the protective hood in accordance with theinvention, the protective hood comprises sound reproduction equipmentfor playing speech, music or other sound inside the protective hood.With the sound reproduction equipment incorporated in the protectivehood, it is possible to listen to music, radio or television sound whilebeing in the steam bath cabinet. Naturally, the sound reproductionequipment can also be used as a sound reproduction unit of a telephone(such as the HF unit of a mobile phone). When the sound reproductionequipment is fitted with a microphone, it is possible to talk on thetelephone while being in the steam bath cabinet.

In one embodiment of the protective hood in accordance with theinvention, the protective hood comprises a display unit to show a videoimage. Due to the display unit, it is possible to watch films and/ortelevision and browse web pages and read electronic mail, etc., whilebeing in the steam bath cabinet/bathing. Additionally, provided that theprotective hood is fitted with telephone equipment, basically it ispossible to call a video-conference/videophone Thus, the soundreproduction equipment and display unit help entertain the bather whilealleviating the boredom associated with the use of existing steam bathcabinets during bathing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Next, the invention will be explained in more detail with reference tothe accompanying drawings, in which,

FIG. 1 illustrates a side view of one protective hood in accordance withthe invention

FIG. 2 illustrates a front view of the protective hood shown in FIG. 1,and

FIG. 3 illustrates a side view of another protective hood in accordancewith the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The protective hood according to FIGS. 1 and 2 comprise a hood part 3 tobe attached to the head opening 4 a in the roof 2 of the steam bathcabinet 1, the said hood part comprising a head opening 4 b equivalentin size to the head opening of the steam bath cabinet with a viewingopening 5 in the front, the said viewing opening featuring a visor 7attached to its top edge with hinges 6 to cover it. Additionally, theprotective hood in accordance with FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises a collar seal8 that can be used for preventing the ingress of steam (for example, viathe head opening of the steam bath cabinet) to inside the protectivehood and/or vice versa, as well as locking latches 9 between theprotective hood and the steam bath cabinet to allow the protective hoodto be attached to the roof 2 of the steam bath cabinet from inside thesteam bath cabinet 1 detachably.

In the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 and 2, the hood part 3 of theprotective hood is made of hard, transparent plastic and the visor 6 ismade of transparent material, such as acrylic glass. The hood part 3 islarge enough in its internal and external dimensions to ensure that thehead of the person sitting in the steam bath cabinet does not touch theinner surface of the hood part when the protective hood is attached tothe roof of the steam bath cabinet. Consequently, the bather does nothave to support the protective hood with his or her head when sitting inthe steam bath cabinet.

The hinges 6 of the visor 7 consist of a shaft fastened to the visor andtwo lugs fastened to the hood part through which the shaft attached tothe visor is fitted. The lugs comprise fixing screws (not shown in theFigures) to allow the hinge 6 to be tightened so that the visor turnsrather sluggishly, making it possible for the visor to remain in thedesired position. In this embodiment, the visor 7 may be made of a clearor slightly tinted material and/or of a material that reflects a mirrorimage outwards. The collar seal 8 is ring-like in shape and made ofsoft, rubbery material, cloth or, for example, of neoprene and attachedair-tightly to the edge of the collar opening of the protective hood,the inner section comprising an elastic ribbing section 10 which canstretch so much that the bather can easily push his or her head throughthe collar opening, the collar seal being tightened around the bather'sneck lightly but relatively tightly when his or her head is inside thehood part 3.

In this case, the locking latches 9 of the hood part consist of T-shapedturning pins 11 installed through the holes 12 provided in the roof 2 ofthe steam bath cabinet 1 to outside of the roof, with the ends on theside of the protective hood having eccentric castors 13 that, when theprotective hood is locked, can be turned on top of the flange collar 15provided in the fixing recesses 14 at the turning pins 11. As a resultof this arrangement, the eccentric castors press the protective hoodfairly tightly against the roof of the steam bath cabinet. In thisembodiment, there are two locking latches 9 on both sides of the bather,so that he or she is able to open the locking latches from inside thesteam bath cabinet.

When using the protective hood according to FIGS. 1 and 2, the batherfirst detaches the protective hood from the steam bath cabinet 1 byopening the locking latches 9 of the protective hood (via the steam bathcabinet door) and lifts the protective hood off the steam bath cabinet.Next, the bather sits down in the steam bath cabinet so that the steambath cabinet door is open while holding the protective hood in his orher hands. Then, the bather places the protective hood on his or herhead so that the ribbing of the collar seal 8 is around his or her neck.Next, the bather pushes the protective hood to the roof 2 of the steambath cabinet as shown in FIG. 1 and closes the protective hood lockinglatches 9 and the steam bath cabinet door. After these preparations, thebather is ready to start the steam bath during which the protective hoodprotects the bather from visual exposure and from wind, rain, etc., ifthe steam bath cabinet is located out of doors for the duration of thebath. The visor 7 can be adjusted in the preferred position before theprotective hood is placed on the head. The visor can be right in thefront of the bather's eyes, fully open or in any position in between.After the bath, the bather opens the protective hood locking latches 9and the door of the steam bath cabinet, making it possible to exit fromthe steam bath cabinet and remove the protective hood by lifting theprotective hood and slipping the collar seal over the head like apullover.

In many respects, the protective hood in accordance with the inventioncan be implemented differently from what is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG.3 presents another embodiment of the protective hood in accordance withthe invention in which the protective hood includes a number of aids andequipment that enhance the bather's comfort and satisfaction. The hoodpart 20 of the protective hood according to FIG. 3 includes, among otherthings, a ventilation opening 21, hearing protectors 22, hot-air blower23, hot water and/or steam spraying nozzles 24, and a mechanical neckand head massage unit 25. Additionally, the viewing opening 26 of thehood part 20 is designed in such a way that it covers only the area ofthe bather's eyes allowing the viewing opening 26 to be fully closedwith the visor/face mask 27 incorporated in the protective hood.

The protective hood in accordance with the invention can be used in awashing cabinet similar to a steam bath cabinet or in a bath where thebather sits or stands inside a cabinet-like compartment. The protectivehood may be permanently fixed to the steam bath cabinet, completelydetached from the steam bath cabinet, attached to the steam bath cabinetdetachably or hinged to the steam bath cabinet, for example so that theprotective hood is turned backwards to open it, or so that theprotective hood incorporates two dome-halves that are opened to bothsides when the steam bath cabinet is entered. A detachable protectivehood is placed on the roof of the steam bath cabinet for the duration ofthe bath so that the bather's head is free and away from the protectivehood. The bather must be able to move his or her head while theprotective hood remains in position. A detachable protective hood canrest on top of the steam bath cabinet and/or washing cabinet alignedwith the fixing pins or grooves, or it can be held in position by meansof electromagnets. It is not necessary to have the type of sealingdescribed above between the protective hood and the cabinet; instead,the sealing can be provided only on the side of the steam bath cabinet,or in some cases the ingress of steam to inside the protective hood canbe permitted in part or in full.

If preferred, the protective hood can be designed and tinted indifferent ways, making it possible to modify its visual outlook asdesired. The material can be freely selected and consist of plastic,glass, rubber, glass fibre, carbon fibre, wood, leather, cork, metal,ceramic materials, cardboard, paper, etc., or any combination of these.Additionally, the materials can be finished with a water-repellent agentor treated to withstand mould and moisture. The material and structureselected for the protective hood should preferably be impact-resistantin order not to compromise the safety of the bather during the bath dueto any external activities.

In some cases, the protectively hood is partially or completelynon-transparent offering no view from outside to inside and/or frominside to outside. This feature can be provided by means of plastic orglass in a known manner. Partial identification of faces can beprevented with grills, netting or lattices or Polaroid-type opticalproperties.

In some protective hood in accordance with the invention there may be anadjustable facemask that can be used to regulate the opening to outdoorair and/or the air and/or steam flow from the protective hood. In somecases, there may be two or several such face masks on top of each other,making it possible to regulate the air vent with one mask and controlthe visual blockages caused by rain, snowfall, etc., with the other.

Separate air, fragrance, medical steam therapy, herbal, breathing air,water, and steam pipes and hoses may be provided to the protective hoodfrom separate steam generators, air blowers and complementaryfragrances, medicines and herbs.

In come cases, the protective hood may incorporate sound reproductionand/or display units. The sound reproduction equipment can be used forlistening to music and radio or it can be used as sound reproductionunit for the telephone in applications that include telephone functions.The display unit can be used for showing video images or as a televisiondisplay unit. The unit can also be used as a computer display, allowingthe bather to browse the web, etc., during the bath. Preferably, theseunits should be resistant to the action of water and steam.

In some embodiments, the thermal insulation capacity of the protectivehood can be enhanced. This can be accomplished so that the material thatthe protective hood is made of, such as polystyrene, has a high thermalinsulation capacity, or so that the inner or outer surface of the actualprotective hood is insulated by applying a special insulation material.Thermal insulation is specifically recommended for locations that do notlimit the bather's view and/or visibility to outsiders. The visibilityof the bather to a person outside the steam bath cabinet may benecessary in certain medical or therapeutic applications or in caseswhen the well-being of a disabled person, etc., is to be monitoredduring the bath. For example, polystyrene is highly suitable for use asthermal insulation, whether it be sprayed, extruded or cast in preferredsections of the protective hood, or in some parts, it can constitute theactual wall structure. Such polystyrene can be coated with a known paintthat withstands the action of water, steam and solar UV radiation. Insome cases such insulation may be provided in between the inner andouter surface of the protective hood if the protective hood is made ofat least two separate shells. Other thermal insulation materials besidepolyurethane and polystyrene can be cork or some other thermalinsulation solution or material commonly used in this type of device.

In some cases, such as in the embodiment according to FIG. 3, theprotective hood also includes adjustable air, water and mechanicalmassaging devices. These and other regulators and functions describedabove can be controlled by the bather by means of separate push buttonsand/or controls that are connected to the control devices regulating thefunctions electronically, by means of optical fibre, compressed air, orhydraulically. The functions of a protective hood fitted with a computercan also be controlled with pre-programmed computer applications byselecting the application suitable for each particular case. Forexample, the program can be selected by means of a coin, banknote,charge card, credit card, or token-operated vending machine or byentering a specific program code or pressing a button, or by means of aseparate control device, such as a mobile phone. The control of theoperation of the protective hood may in some cases consist of monitoringand/or regulating the temperature, blood pressure, breathing, pulse andenergy consumption of the bather. The control of the protective hood canalso be fully manual, fully automatic, or based on programs or anycombination of these. It is advisable to provide manual controls to stopor change an on-going bathing program. Similarly, in some cases it isadvisable to have sensors and devices monitoring the conditions insidethe protective hood to control the internal functions of the protectivehood and/or sound an alarm in order to ensure the safety of the batherproperly, for example in case of malfunctions or if the bather has a fitor seizure.

The electrical functions and adjustments of the protective hood shouldadvisably be of the low-voltage type. In general, for example, 24 V or12 V or, in some cases even voltages lower than that, are suitable. Aprotective hood using this type of electrical system does not requiresimilar moisture and electrical safety safeguards as systems powered by110 V or 220 V mains power.

In some cases the protective hood may be fitted with nozzles forcleaning and/or disinfecting and/or drying the protective hood beforeand/or after use. The protective hood may also have a separate heater,e.g. an electrical resistor, in order to keep the protective hood at thedesired temperature and/or in order to dry any condensate and/or washingwater during use and/or after it. In some cases, it is possible to keepthe bather's head dry by means of ventilation air and a separate heater,in which case water-soluble make-up and hair-dos do not suffer duringthe bath.

The control of the temperature and relative humidity inside theprotective hood can also be implemented so that the temperature andhumidity are adjustable during the bath. In some embodiment, the controlof the protective hood can be implemented in such a way that theprotective hood can be used for performing various therapy and healthcures, such as steam bath, therapy and treatment cycles, rest periodsand combinations of the same. The protective hood in accordance with theinvention can also be used for opening the pores of the skin onapplication of various skin care agents and similar sub-stances when theprotective hood is fitted with various controls, etc., or connected to acomputer that controls the protective hood by means of a computerapplication. Additionally, some protective hood in accordance with theaccordance can have spraying devices for rinsing and/or washing thebather in connection with the bath. Furthermore, some embodiment of theprotective hood in accordance with the invention may have air nozzlesinside the bathing compartment to provide air massage during the bathand to dry the bather with warm air after the bath.

In some cases the protective hood may be designed to be shared by two orseveral bathers, for example when the bathers are inside the same steamand/or bathing cabinet and/or water basin.

1. A protective hood for protecting a head of a person being and/orbathing inside a steam bath cabinet, including a hood part covering thehead of the person inside the steam bath cabinet at least partially;said hood part comprising one opening for pushing the person's head intoa hood part; said protective hood being attached to the steam bathcabinet at a head opening in a roof of the steam bath cabinet in such away that the head of the person inside the steam bath cabinet is atleast partially inside the hood part; said head opening of theprotective hood includes a collar seal designed to improve the level ofprotection provided by the protective hood and to prevent the ingress ofsteam from the steam bath cabinet to inside the hood part and/or fromthe hood part of the protective hood into the steam bath cabinet; andthe protective hood includes at least one steam supply duct to supplysteam into the hood part for the purpose of steaming the head of theperson inside the steam bath cabinet.
 2. A protective hood in accordancewith claim 1, in which the protective hood is attached to the roof ofthe steam bath cabinet detachably and/or such that it can be turnedopen.
 3. A protective hood in accordance with claim 1, in which the hoodpart includes at least one viewing opening approximately at the heightof the bather's eyes; the said opening incorporating at least oneadjustable visor to allow the viewing opening to be covered and openedadjustably.
 4. A protective hood in accordance with claim 1, in whichthe protective hood includes at least one air-conditioning duct leadinginto the hood part in order to ventilate and/or cool the hood part.
 5. Aprotective hood in accordance with claim 1, in which the protective hoodincorporates sound reproduction devices for reproducing speech, music orother sounds within the hood part.
 6. A protective hood in accordancewith claim 1, in which the protective hood incorporates a display unitfor the presentation of video images.
 7. A protective hood in accordancewith claim 1, in which the protective hood incorporates a massagingdevice for massaging the bather's face and/or head.
 8. A protective hoodin accordance with claim 1, in which the hood part of the protectivehood is at least partially made of a material that is non-transparentwhen viewed from the outside but transparent when viewed from theinside.